


As Fate Would Have It

by orphan_account



Category: 7th Heaven
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-08
Updated: 2017-05-08
Packaged: 2018-10-29 16:30:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10857789
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Robbie meets someone familiar while stranded in San Francisco the night before Lucy and Kevin's wedding.





	As Fate Would Have It

**Author's Note:**

> Original Title: Destiny.  
> Original Word Count: 981.  
> Original Publish Date: August 18, 2012.
> 
> This story has been heavily revised; about a third of the original story has been deleted and the rest has been changed to make it flow better.

This particular April evening was unusually cold, especially for San Francisco going into the second month of spring. The temperatures had to be in the twenties, or even the teens. There was a blizzard ravaging outside the airport where Robbie Palmer now stood, waiting for his flight to Los Angeles. He could still feel a cold draft seeping through the thick windows of the terminal.  
  
Robbie shivered and pulled his jacket closer to keep warm; but it was futile: this jacket was more suited for a Floridian winter. The thin layer of material was not suitable for this sort of weather, which Robbie had experienced when he had been really young and his mother made him and his brother visit their father’s relatives in Connecticut. Robbie shivered again, partially due to these unpleasant memories.  
  
The young man shoved his hands deep into his pockets and made his way over to the board listing at the gate. The flight to Los Angeles continued to read _delayed_ ; it had been delayed for the past four hours. Robbie let out a sigh and took a seat. At this point, it would be nearly impossible for him to make it to the wedding on time. Lucy was going to be angry, although Robbie knew Kevin couldn’t care less if he was late or didn’t even show at all.  
  
Robbie checked his watch, which told him that it was quarter past eleven at night.  
  
_Might as well get something to drink._ He thought, decided to head towards the coffee stand some twenty yards away with his carry-on in hand.  
  
“I’d like a large dark roast coffee, please. Milk, no sugar.” Robbie put in his order and pulled out a couple dollars. As Robbie waited for his order to be complete, there was a gentle tap on his shoulder. He turned around to see a woman, about the same age as him, with shoulder-length hair in a ponytail.  
  
“Excuse me, I can’t help but notice how familiar you look. Are you Robbie Palmer?” The woman asked just as the barista placed the steaming cup of coffee on the counter, and he handed over four dollars.  
  
“Keep the tip.” Robbie nodded and turned away, looking at the woman properly for the first time.  
  
“Should I know you?” He began to drag his luggage back to the seats and the woman followed him.  
  
“Don’t you recognize me? I’m Patty Mary, Kevin Kinkirk’s sister and Lucy’s sister-in-law as of tomorrow.”  
  
Realization dawned upon Robbie as he recalled seeing her almost a year earlier when she had flown out to Glen Oak to fetch Kevin and Ben. She had wanted her brothers to come home because their mother began to date, but they wanted to say with their girlfriends.  
  
“Of course.” Robbie smiled, taking a seat and placing his carry-on at his feet. Patty Mary took the seat next to him and placed her backpack on her lap. “How have you been?”  
  
“I’ve been all right, almost done my junior year. Exams are in a few weeks, so as you can see…” Patty Mary pointed to her stuffed backpack. “I may be able to miss a day of class, but studying does not wait.”  
  
“How about you? I heard you moved to Florida last fall.”  
  
“Yeah, in November. I want to be closer to my mother and brothers. Mom isn’t doing so well.”  
  
Patty Mary’s smile disappeared and she gently placed a hand on his shoulder.  
  
“I’m so sorry, Robbie. If you ever need to talk, I’m here.” Robbie nodded, knowing a little bit about the tragedy Patty Mary and her brothers endured during their childhood.  
  
“Thanks, that means a lot to me.” He looked at her and smiled weakly.  
  
“You know, I’m surprised.” Robbie placed his cup of coffee on the small table next to his seat after sitting in silence for several minutes, watching the snow culminate outside.  
  
“Why is that?”  
  
“You’re being awfully nice, sitting here with me and offering to talk if I ever need to. Why? Your brothers don’t even like me. I wouldn’t put it past Kevin to talk trash about me.”  
  
Patty Mary shrugged, looking at Robbie with shining brown eyes.  
  
“That’s their problem and sure, Kevin has said some things; but that’s their problem. I don’t see why they don’t like you because, from what I can tell, you seem like a really nice guy.”  
  
Robbie let out a short laugh, looking at his companion in disbelief.  
  
“If only you knew my back story.”  
  
“So? Doesn’t everyone have some sort of baggage? Look, the way I see it, we can’t dwell on the past or else we’d never get anywhere. We can use that experience as a reminder of who we want to become and how we can accomplish that.”  
  
“Are you sure you’re a Kinkirk? You definitely don’t sound like one.”  
  
Patty Mary laughed and nodded once.  
  
“A hundred percent sure.”

**Author's Note:**

> In the original version of the story, it was implied Robbie and Patty Mary made it to Lucy and Kevin's wedding, therefore making it AU. But here, I decided to leave it open-ended, so they either made it or didn't.


End file.
